Stitch transfer needle for knitting machines



March 15, 1938. H. MCADAMS 2,111,477

STITCH TRANSFER NEEDLE FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed July 17, 1936 2Sheets-Shem- 1 INVENTOR Har'r M Adams 50 I, x 45 W QZL Q E) I ATTORNEYS.

H. MCADAMS STITCH TRANSFER NEEDLE FOR KNITTING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed July 17, 1936 March 15, 1938.

x Z4 INVENTOR.

H M Adams BY & ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 15, 1938 STITCH TRANSFER NEEDLE,FOB-KNITTING v MACHINES Harry McAdams, Reading, Pa., assignor to TheNolde and Horst Company, Reading, Pa., a. colporation Application July.17,1936, Serial No. 91,182

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in knitting machines, and hasparticular reference to an improved dial needle for use upon ribknitting machines which are capable of trans ferring stitch loops fromcylinder needles to dial needles, and vice versa. The needle isgenerally of the type set forth in my application Serial No. 68,526, andis an improvement thereon in that a groove or slot is provided in a sidewall of the needle for slidably receiving the point of the spring bitarm, so as to permit the stitch loop to slide thereover intotransferring position with respect to another needle.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent duringthe course of the following detailed description.

In the accompany g drawings, forming a part 'of this specification, andwherein similar-reference characters designate corresponding partsthroughout the several views,

Figure l is a vertical sectional view' taken through a cylinder and dialconstruction of the improved knitting machine, showing the associatedfeatures thereof.

Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view of the dial bed of the machine,enlarged to approximately twice normal size, and having the improveddial needle associated therewith: the dot and dash lines designating thenormal butt directing grooves in the dial cap.

Flgure3 is an inverted plan view of .the dial cap, showing the needledirecting butt grooves and movable cam arrangement.

Figures 4, 5 and 6 are respectively views showing in top plan, sideelevation, and opposed side elevation the improved dial needle.

Figure this an enlarged cross sectional view taken through the needlesubstantially on the line 5 5"- of Figure 5, and more particularlyshowing the manner in which the point end of the needle is buried in agroove or slot in the sidewall of the needle in order to permit the freeslipping of the stitch loop thereover.

Figures '7, 8 and 9 designate a typical dial and cylinder needle in aseries of steps to effect the transfer of stitch loops from the dialneedle to the cylinder needle. 1

Figure 10 is a perspective view of the improved dial needle with aresilient loop expanding arm associated as an integral part thereof cutaway to, show the grooved construction of the loop expanding eyeprovided in the body of the needle,

and to more clearly designate the groove in which the point end of thebit slides.

Figure 11 is a cross sectional view taken substantially on the line Illl of Figure 10.

Figure 12 is a modified form of the improved dial needle. 7

Figure 13 is aperspective view of the modified form of the improveddlal'needle with the resilient loop expanding arm removed to show thedetailed construction of the other parts of the dial needle.

Figures, 14 and 15 are respectively views of cylinder needles withtransfer bit spring arms and grooved arrangements similar to thepreferred and modified forms of the dial needle shown in Figures 5 and12respectively.

In the drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration is shown apreferred embodiment of the invention,'the letter A may generallydesignate a knitting machine, which may include a rotating cylinder Band a rotatable dial bed C. The cylinder B may have an associated set ofcylinder needles D and the usual and appropriate means for actuating thesame, which may in clude suitable cams E and E, and jacks F if desired.

A set of dialneedles are provided for use in the grooved dial bed C;These dial needles may be appropriately designated by the numeral 21].As part of the dial a stationary grooved cap G is used. Suitable yarnfeed fingers H are provided for feeding various yarns to the dial andcylinder needles. The other associated parts of a knitting machine maybe used, such as a latch ring K and web holder and sinker constructionL.

, The general featuresof the knitting machine may be those of the Bannertyp as shown in U. S. Patent No. 933,443, or if desired the knittingmachine may be of a stationary cylinder I type with a revoluble cam set.Preferably the knitting machine is of the type disclosed in my U. S.application, Serial No. 755,621, filed December l, 1934 or of thecharacter set forth in my more recently developed machine for automatiscally knitting continuous strings of stockings with interchange ofstitches between cylinder and dial needles and vice versa, U. S.application Serial No. 86,420, filed June 20, 1936.

The present application shows a dial needle of the nature set forth inmyapplication Serial No. 68,526, filed March 12, 1936 in that the springarm bit construction is an integral part of the needle itself and is notseparately slidable in the dial with respect-to the needle with which itis associated.

The dlalbedCasshowninFigure to: the

drawings, may be keyed as at 25 to the dial drive shaft 26. The uppersurface of the dial bed C may be grooved as in usual manner with dialneedle receiving grooves 21. These grooves are of normal thickness sothat a large number of needles may be used in the dial for the knittingof fine gauge work. These grooves 21 are radially disposed and each fortheir major length are of the same width. They enlarge at their foreends 28, as is usual.

The dial cap G is shown inverted in Figure 3 of the drawings, and thegroove and cam arrangement is shown in dot and dash lines in normalrelation to the dial bed and needle butt arrangement in Figure 2 of thedrawings. Thus, the dial cap G may have a groove 30 wherein the butts ofthe dial needles travel in the direction indicated by the arrows inFigures 2 and 3 of the drawings. Stationary stitch knitting and stitchtransfer cams 3i and 32 respectively are provided for directing the dialneedles into stitch forming and stitch transfer relation along groovedpaths 33 and 34. Compressible plunger earns 36 and 31 are provided onthe cap G for deflecting the butts of the dial needles into grooves 33and 34 respectively against the stationary cams 3i and 32. These plungercams 36 and 31 are actuated by plunger mechanism, such as shown, at 3Bin Figure l of the drawings, and has been more specifically described inmy co-pending applications Ser. Nos. 558,798, filed August 22, 1931, and755,621, filed December 1, 1934.

The improved dial needle 20 includes a body 40 of normal needlethickness and height, having a reduced forward end ll provided with theloop receiving hook 42. Preferably the needle is of the latch type andhas a latch 44. Intermediate its ends the body 40 has preferably anupstanding butt which may be either long, short, or medium, as desired.The lower section of the body 40 at one side is provided with aresilient and yieldable loop expanding arm 50, in height preferablyone-half of the height of the body 40, and in thickness preferablyone-half of the thickness of the body. It may be formed by. splittingthe body 40, or by grooving the body 40 and soldering the rear end ofthe arm in place at 5|. It extends forwardly along the side of the body,relatively disconnected therefrom, so that it may be resiliently flexedagainst the body to provide with the body a thickness which is no morethan the normal thickness of the body 40 and no more than the normalthickness of a conventional dial needle.

The body 40 at the side thereof facing the arm 50 near the reducedportion 4| is concavely recessed, as shown at 60 in the drawings, fromthe extreme lower edge thereof preferably to the top edge of the body40. This recess, due to the thickness of the body at this location, ispreferably less than one-half of the normal thickness of the body 40 inorder that the dial needle may be disposed substantially opposite acomplementary cylinder needle which is to be inserted through the eye ofwhich the recess 60 is a part, without the necessity of relative lateralshift of the cylinder or dial needles,'although such shift may beaccomplished if desired in accordance with the arrangement which I havedeveloped and set forth in my application Serial 110,136,420, filed June20, 1936.

The front end of the loop expanding arm 50 is normally bowed outwardlyat 65, in facing relation with the recess 60, to provide therewith theloop opening or expanding eye through which the cylinder needle D isextended, as shown in Figure 4 of the drawings, to receive the stitchloop 10. The fore end of the body 40 is provided with an upwardly andrearwardly sloping stitch loop engaging and expanding shoulder 1| at a.location which is rearwardly of the tip end of the latch end of theneedle when the latch is fully opened, and the extreme free end of theresilient arm 50 is likewise sloped in the same plane with this shoulderH and flush therewith.

In the preferred dial needle 20 there is provided in the side wallthereof, preferably forwardly of the shoulder I l a groove orindentation 80 which may be elongated and which lies between the top andbottom edges of this part of the needle, and which is adapted to receivethe pointed end 8| of the bit arm 50; the latter being tapered at itsupper and lower edges to a point so that this end of the spring arm maylie flush with the outer side wall of the dial needle when the springarm is pressed flush against the dial needle. With this arrangement thestitch loop may eflectively slip over the bit arm 50 into properlyexpanded and extended position upon the eye and against the shoulder ofthe needle for definite and certain transfer position with respect tothe complementary cylinder needle. A portion of the wall of the body ofthe dial needle facing the bowed end 65 of the resilient arm 50 may beremoved at 84, shown in Figures 6 and 11 of the drawings, although notfor as great a height as that of the arm portion 55. This facilitatesstitch application over the eye and facile insertion and withdrawal ofthe cylinder needle.

In the modified form of .needle 2i! shown in Figures 12 and 13 of thedrawings the slot or groove 80' is located in the side wall of theneedle but opens at the bottom edge thereof, and the pointed end of thebit arm 50 is likewise shaped so that it will lie in this slot or groove80 to perniit proper stitch transfer.

The normal position of the loop expanding arm 50 relative to the body ofthe needle is shown in Figure 4, 5 and 5 of the drawings.- Sliding inthe groove of the dial bed the loop receiving eye opening is onlyexpanded sufilciently to receive the cylinder needle when the dialneedle is projected by the cams 31 and 32 to the positions shown in theleft hand portion of Figure 2 of the drawings. In retractedposition thebowed portion 65 of the resilient arm 50 is compressed flat against therecessed wall of the body of the dial needle so that'the maximum widthof the dial needle at this loop expanding eye ,is then no greater thanthe maximum width of the body 40 of the dial needle, as can readily beunderstood in the retracted positions of the dial needles shown in thegrooves of the dial bed in Figure 2 of the drawings.

Solid black butts shown in Figure 2 of the drawings are the long butts,and the blank butts are the short butts. The cam 31 is depressed partwayand first moves the long butt dial needles into the transfer positionshown in the left hand portion of Figure 2. The plunger cam 32 projectsthe dial needles so that their loop expanding eyes are extended beyondthe periphery of thedial, and in superposed relation over thecomplementary cylinder needles. The needles are elevated by appropriatecam means lii' after the manner substantially described in cylinder myco-pending above mentioned application Serial No. 755,621, filedDecember 1, 1934, to receive the stitch loops 70. As shown in Figure 8of the drawings the stitch loop 10 is expanded by the eye of the dialneedle and rests against the shoulder I I. Note that no part of thestitch loop is interfered with by the arm 5001 by the body of the dialneedle as to impede its effective extension and expansion for properreception with respectto the cylinder needle which is to receive it.After insertion of the cylinder needle into the eye of the dial needlethe loop slips with facility onto the cylinder needle, and uponretraction of the dial needle the stitch will entirely clear withoutcatching on any part of the dial needle, as can well be understood fromFigures 4 and 5 of the drawings. I

, As shownin Figure 2 of the drawings the cylinder needles arepreferably provided in number twice the amount of the dial needles. Thearrangement is substantially the same and for the same purposes as setforth in my above mentioned co-pending application Serial No. 755,621,filed December 1, 1934. However, the dial-needles are preferably almostdirectly opposite alternating cylinder needles and these cylinderneedles are the ones which are inactive duringone and one rib knitting.They are only active during plain knitting when for the most part theknitting is done on the'cylinder needles, and it is to these cylinderneedles that stitches of the dial needles are to be transferred whentransferring from rib knitting to plain knitting. The fact that dialneedles maybe placed substantially opposite the cylinder needles whichare to receive stitches therefrom is made possible by reason of theimproved loop expanding eye construction of the dial needle.

It is of course to be understood that I contemplate to make a cylinderneedle having a loop expanding eye and shoulder arrangement'similar tothe above described for the dial needle, and such cylinder needles havebeen shown in Figures 14 and 15 of the drawings. cylinder needles aresubstantially identically the same as the similar 'parts of thepreferred and modified forms of the dial needles, and similar referencecharacters have been applied thereto except that the exponents b and "chave been added to designate parts similar to the needles shown inFigures 5 and 1-2 respectively. The transfer of stitch loops fromcylinder needles to dial needles has been effectively described in myabove identified co-pending application Serial No. 755,621, filedDecember 1, 1934, and the-same arrangement may be used with the modifiedcylinder needles of the present application.

From the foregoing it can be seen that an improved dial needle hasbeen'provided which differs over the dial needle of my applicationSerial No. 68,526, in that the free,end of the spring arm lies within aslot, groove or indentation disposed in the side wall of the dialneedle.

The parts of these Various changes in the shape, size, and arrangementof parts may be made to the forms of invention herein shown anddescribed, without departing from the spirit of the invention or thescope of the claims.

I claim: a

1. As an article of manufacture a knitting machine needie having a bodyportion provided with a stitch drawing hook thereon, said body portionbeing reduced in height rearwardly of the hook to provide a stitch loopengaging shoulder directly facing the open hook of the needle, the bodyportion of the needle rearwardly'of said shoulder 'being appreciablyrecessed in. a side wall thereof,

a spring arm secured to the body portion of the needle at a pointrearwardly of said recess without increasing the normal thickness of thesaid body portion of the needle, said spring arm having a forwardlyextended resilient portion directly facing said recess to providetherewith. a needle entering eye, said'spring arm at its free endextending to a point beyond the said shoulder, the side wall of theneedle forwardly of said shoulder being longitudinally grooved toreceive the free end of said arm in a sliding relation therewith, theresilient portion of said spring .arm being collapsible within saidrecess when the needle is in a needle bed groove so as not to increasethe aforesaid normal thickness of the needle body portion.'

2. As an article of manufacture a knitting machine needie having a bodyportion provided with a stitch drawing hook thereon, said body portionbeing reduced in height rearwardly of the hook to provide a stitch loopeng ing shoulder directly facing the open hook of the needle, the bodyportion of the needle rearwardly of said shoulder being appreciablyrecessed in a side wall thereof, a spring-arm secured to ,the bodyportion of the needle at a point reawardly of said recess withoutincreasing the normal thickness of the said body portion of, the needle,said spring arm having a forwardly extended resilient portion directlyfacing said recess to provide therewith a needle ,entering eye, saidspring arm at its free end exsaid body portion of the needle along itsneedle bed facing edge being notched thru the entire thickness thereofdirectly at the needle entering recess, said resilient portion of thespring arm directly facing said notch.

HARRY McADAMS.

